Gas meters are widely utilized in the metering and energy arts to measure the amount of gas flowing through gas lines. To allow such flow data to be collected and interpreted, gas meter modules, known in the art as gas meter endpoints or gas meter indexes and collectively referred to herein as gas meter endpoints, may be connected to the gas meters. Further, technology related to gas meter endpoints has advanced generally to the use of automatic meter reading (AMR) systems, which allow for the transmission of gas consumption data to locations remote from the gas meters and gas meter endpoints.
To allow gas meter endpoints to collect or display consumption data, an interface for the gas meter endpoints with the gas meters must be provided. A typical gas meter includes a drive mechanism which rotates about an axis as gas flows through the gas meter and is consumed. Thus, a gas meter endpoint generally engages the rotating gas meter drive mechanism and collects gas consumption data based on the rotation of the drive mechanism. For example, many gas meter endpoints include a wriggler. The wriggler is generally configured to provide for the gas meter endpoint an interface with the drive mechanism of the gas meter. As the drive mechanism rotates, it causes the wriggler to rotate, and the rotation of the wriggler is utilized to collect gas consumption data.
The installation of gas meter endpoints on gas meters, in many cases, requires a blind assembly procedure. For example, the installer of the gas meter endpoint may not be able to visually orient and connect the wriggler of the gas meter endpoint to the drive mechanism, because the wriggler and drive mechanism may be shielded from the view of the installer during installation. Thus, in many cases, the wriggler is improperly or poorly mounted to, or engaged with, an associated drive mechanism. For example, if the wriggler is not correctly mounted to the drive mechanism, components of the drive mechanism may become improperly embedded in the wriggler, subjecting the drive mechanism to excessive drag and unintentional loads. Such an installation can change the normal or expected rotation of the drive mechanism to an inhibited or unexpected rotation, causing improper readings and potentially severely damaging the gas meter and drive mechanism, even possibly to the point of failure.
Further, after a gas meter endpoint is installed on a gas meter, the installer must wait a finite amount of time for the drive mechanism to engage the wriggler and provide initial flow data, to ensure that the gas meter endpoint is working and to confirm a proper installation. In many cases, the wriggler includes substantial so-called “take-up” portions, which are portions of the wriggler that do not rotatably engage the drive mechanism. The drive mechanism must rotate through such take-up portions before engaging the wriggler and providing initial flow data. Such “take-up time” can, in some cases, last 15 to 20 minutes or longer.
Thus, a wriggler device that facilitates proper installation of a gas meter endpoint on a gas meter and reduces the risk of improper installation would be desired in the art. Additionally, a wriggler device that reduces take-up time after installation would be advantageous.